within the sound of silence
by scintilliania
Summary: compilation of one-shots inspired by random songs (there will be more in the future, of course). some of them may be a little gore, but I'll always write a warning before the chapters. enjoy.


_**(AU where everything is the same except Illumi works with a rifle."**_

**_WARNING: slightly gore_**

_**Song: Shot in the Dark by Ozzy Osbourne**_

_**Out on the streets I'm stalking the night**_

_**I can hear my heavy breathing**_

_**Paid for the kill, but it doesn't seem right**_

_**Something there I can't believe in**_

_**Voices are calling from inside my head**_

_**I can hear them, I can hear them**_

_**Vanishing memories of things that were said**_

_**They can't try to hurt me now**_

There was a strange sound in the distance; a quiet squeak of a little critter as if some little mouse was just being murdered. It ended with a long, tiny cry echoing in the darkness longer than it should have before everything went silent again.

Weird. He didn't expect anybody here.

Then all he could hear was a sound of flesh being torn apart, a quiet animal-like grunting and another weird, tiny sound. A long hiss he didn't expect crossed the air before it turned into another loud cry of two cats fighting each other for food behind the trash.

A red cat ran past Illumi's legs, holding what was left of the dead mouse in its mouth as another black cat ran after its red, fluffy tail to catch it a few metres away and continue their fight.

The assassin breathed a mental sigh of relief. He wasn't afraid of being caught, he just felt a little better knowing that today there's no need to kill anybody else beside his target.

Night crept into the city, swallowing the quiet and empty streets and hiding every building behind its long curtain of darkness. Illumi stepped into a pool of white light from the street lantern above his head and looked down at his feet, looking like a lost specter under the moonlight; and that's exactly how he felt.

He let out a deep breath; the only sound he let himself make, because there was no other way for him to calm down his mind. He would never admit that he couldn't do a job he was paid to do; he could do that if he really had to, but not this time. This time he had to do this job not only for his client, but also for himself; because no matter how angry his father would be after that, he had to prove something.

The light flickered a few times before it made a strange sound and switched off, leaving Illumi alone in the darkness. He didn't move for a second as he kept staring at the sidewalk beneath his feet before he went on. Silence embraced him with its cool and gentle arms while chaos and memories slipped into his mind.

He could still remember his father coming back home after his job; sometimes he was angry, sometimes even calmer than usual, and sometimes just quiet and cool, but he always had something to say to young Illumi waiting for his come back and preparing himself for the next training. Illumi felt bad for forgetting half of what his father had thaught him at the time when he couldn't take a job himself, but there was the one thing he couldn't forget to this day.

_"One day, sooner or later, you'll hear a tiny voice in your head telling you that what you're doing isn't the right thing to do. You'll stand in front of a target you don't want to kill, and even if it's just a stranger, you'll feel that something isn't quite right. The more you rebel against it the louder it gets, because it especially hates to be ignored._

_"But the thing is, to never let the voice take control over you. This little parasyte inside you will feel good knowing that it changed you the way it wanted, but you'll never feel good with yourself after that. Because it will open your eyes wider than ever."_

_Silva furrowed his eyebrows as little Illumi looked up at his cool expression, his eyes shining. The man wasn't sure if his son understood what he was saying, but he most certainly will once these dark eyes lose their beautiful, innocent look._

_"Even if several voices will be screaming to your ears and telling you to go back, you can never show that they're hurting you. They're just in your head. You know better what's real and what's not. Focus on that. Assassins don't question what they do. They do what they have to do."_

And after that Illumi was waiting — each day, each month and each year of his life as a real assassin for the voices in his head to haunt him as his father had said and make him weaker when he especially had to become stronger. It took him some time to find out that the real voices would never come; because the loudest voice he could've ever heard was his own.

He wasn't a mindless android after all, even if he had to act like one.

He could feel the weight of his rifle on his back as he continued down the street. A tall, concrete building emerged from the dark to appear in front of Illumi's eyes. Finding this place was his first goal for tonight. Earlier today he had received an anonymous message that the doors to this abandoned building would be closed, but to his surprise he didn't even have to push the handle too hard to open the doors.

Something wasn't quite right here. He opened all his senses to check if there was anyone inside, but he couldn't sense any presence. He stepped into the lobby of what was once an expensive hotel and began climbing the stairs to the upper floors to look for the right window. His footsteps echoed through the quiet hallways, his blood was pulsing through his veins. He could feel his heart beating in his chest, though his face stayed still, almost like a mannequin.

He allowed himself to exhale deeply as he found a room with the right window overlooking the street. He grabbed his rifle and put it on the widnowsill so that he could look through the target sight. A chill ran down his spine as he looked out of the window and immadietly shook his head.

_Assassins don't question what they do. They do what they have to do._

He took the safety off and looked at the street, waiting for his target. A single car appeared on the street and drove past the hotel; and then another and another and another . . . Finally, a black, shining limousine stopped on the street. Its door opened slowly to reveal his target.

He didn't like to think much before pulling the trigger, but this time everything was different. This time he was hired to kill a man he knew way longer and way better than he'd want to and he wanted to show the whole world, his family and himself that he can do it, no matter how long they used to stick together; no matter how much he _liked_ his somewhat annoying and disturbing presence that Illumi would normally avoid if it wasn't about _him_. He was glad that tonight all his concerns about this would be over.

He looked through the sight at the red-haired man as he got out of the car and let the limousine drive away. Illumi was surprised to see him wearing a black suit, his pale face free of his everyday circus makeup and his red hair falling loosely on his sides, but he didn't have too much time to wonder why his target chose such an outfit for the last day of his life.

He waited for him to stand on the right spot so that Illumi could fire the rifle, but then the man did something that completely surprised the shooter. He looked up at the window at which Illumi was standing and smirked at the sight of his rifle. It made it harder for the assassin to pull the trigger as his heart jumped in his chest at the sight of these two golden eyes, but in the end he did it.

The bullet hit him straight in the eye, making him collapse on the sidewalk, still smirking at Illumi. He closed his eyes as if getting ready to die in a pool of his own blood, and then wiped the blood off his cheek, stood up and smiled even wider at his would-be killer.

Illumi didn't bother to keep his monotone face any longer. He furrowed his eyebrows at the man on the street as if being offended that he didn't want to die and let Illumi live in peace. Illumi put his rifle back on his back and exited the room.

Maybe that's for the best.

* * *

"Say, when did you find out?" Hisoka asked as if Illumi was stupid and hadn't known him for the last several years.

Illumi stood behind him on the roof of the abandoned hotel, watching his hair move gently in the wind as he was staring down at the sleeping city, mesmerized. When did he find out that Hisoka had hired Illumi to assassinate him? Actually, he didn't. He just knew that something wasn't quite right.

Hisoka turned his head to him and smirked with amusment, "You didn't, did you?"

"You know I don't really like to think about my targets." the assassin responded, pretending not to see this little glint in Hisoka's eye and the childlish proudness of his little victory, "Why did you do that?"

"Yes, it'd be hard to see them as real human beings instead of tools for making money." Hisoka said quietly and chuckled, "I've been waiting for this question, dear Illumi. Just for fun." he smiled innocently, "I needed to check if you can do this."

"Why do you think I couldn't do that?" Illumi wasn't offended, just curious, though none of his emotions could be heard in his voice.

"Because I know how much you like to spare your victims." Hisoka said nonchalantly, "This is the type of assassin you are, _Illu_."

Normally, Illumi would shiver at the sound of this silly nickname if he wasn't trying to control himself, "I never spare my targets." Illumi would be grateful if Hisoka called them that, "I let live those I don't need to kill."

"Sure. The world would be a better place if there were more people like you." Hisoka squinted his eyes at Illumi, though both of them knew he wasn't speaking seriously. Yes, they both were pretty fucked up, but at least they were aware of that.

Illumi had the urge to come closer to Hisoka and stand quietly next to him so that they could admire the view together, but stopped himself from doing so, "Did you know that you were going to die tonight and that's why you chose such an outfit?" he asked.

"Oh, you've noticed?" Hisoka turned to him so that he could see his suit better. To be honest, it didn't suit him at all, but Illumi chose to say nothing, "No, that's not that. I just have to look good if I want to make a special proposal to someone, don't you think?"

Illumi looked into the distance at the tall buildings and glass scyscrapers before them. He didn't care what kind of proposal Hisoka had in mind, but if the clown, magician or whatever he called himself wanted to tell him, he'd gladly listen.

"Do you remember my fight with Chrollo?" Hisoka asked suddenly.

"How could I forget? It wasn't that long ago." said Illumi.

"It was the first time when I died." he smiled.

"Was there any other times I don't know about?" Illumi asked emotionless, but received no answer.

"I think, no, I'm_ sure_ I can do it again." Hisoka looked away from him. _Die?_ llumi wanted to ask, but Hisoka continued, "You know, stand up to fight to the death with someone who I'm sure will kill me. Or I'll kill them, so it can end with at least one dead person. The fight with Chrollo was pretty boring, if you know what I mean."

No, Illumi didn't know what he meant. Hisoka had fought the man he'd always wanted to fight and died a tragic and spectacular death in front of the eyes of thousands of people, making a great show no one will ever forget and it still wasn't enough for him. Illumi knew best Hisoka loved chellanges, but did he really have no limits?

Illumi shook his head which made Hisoka smirk at him with satisfaction, "A true fight isn't that simple, _Illumi_." he said in a weird tone as if Illumi didn't know how fighting works, but the assassin guessed that he was just talking about his own view on fights, "A true fight should never end. A true fight should be dangerous for everybody around. A true fight should involve other people and make them its victims without them knowing."

Illumi still couldn't understand. Wasn't that exactly what happened that day in the Heavens Arena? The assassin rised an eyebrow, "Didn't your fight with Chrollo started the day you joined the Phantom Troupe, then?"

Hisoka smiled to himself at the sound of Illumi's words, but didn't answer. "I came up with a cool idea recently. Do you want to hear?"

Illumi didn't have a chance to answer as Hisoka stepped closer to him; so close Illumi wouldn't be able to point at him his rifle in a comfortable position, but close enough to choke Hisoka with his bare hands.

"I've hired you once, and now I'm going to hire you again; but this time, I have a condition for you. I also want to kill you." he lowered his head a little so that he and Illumi could touch each other with their foreheads, "And you know that I'll gladly do that for free." _Because seeing your emotionless, dead face is worth a lot more than any money._

You've enojed being dead so bad that now you want to do it again? Illumi thought. _You really don't have any limits._

"I've figured that much a long time ago." Illumi nodded his head. It was obvious that sooner or later they would do the world a favor and finally kill each other. The real question was which one of them was going to die first.

"Is that a yes?" he asked, but Illumi said nothing, "As our engagement ring I want to give you a little pre-nup, so you won't lose anything. Even if I die earlier, you can still collect your reward and consider it your win."

"Not yet." answered Illumi as if he didn't hear the whole "engagment ring" part.

"You've _almost_ killed me today, haven't you? Thanks to that, I'm now sure that this time you can do it for real." he hung his head at one side, watching himself in Illumi's big and black eyes as if they were two little, round mirrors; he had to admit that his broken eye looked quite interesting, "At first, I wasn't sure if you'd be the right opponent to my game, but it turns out my cards were right. You've proved yourself. How about a drink tonight? Then you can give me your answer, but I bet I know it already."

Illumi knew Hisoka was just teasing him so, with all his might, he tried not to look offended; which was pretty easy considering he_ almost_ didn't move his face for the entire evening. Was that really the proposal Hisoka had mentioned before? Did he dressed in this suit just to ask Illumi to kill him and vice versa? Or did he do that for the engagment part so that Illumi would take him more seriously?

Hisoka came back to the spot where he was standing before and looked down at the street as if he was getting ready to jump.

"Not today." said Illumi, "But if you really want to know my answer, then yes. That's my job after all."

Hisoka turned to him, "I suspected you'd say that. You wouldn't let me live now, after you screwed up your job, would you?" he asked matter-of-factly, "You're my fiancé now, you know that?"

The realization hit Illumi, as he stared blankly at Hisoka's amused face.

_As our engagement ring I want to give you a little pre-nup, so you won't lose anything..._

But why _engagment ring_? Why not just a normal deal? Was it because Hisoka couldn't be trusted too much and the only promise he'd never break had to be sealed with engagment? If so, if Hisoka wasn't planning to play dirty this time, he had to be really serious about all of this; which meant that no matter how funny this _game_ sounds (at least for this two) Illumi had to be serious about his wicked _relationship_ with his fiancé as well.

"_Fiancés in crime._" Illumi said quietly.

Hisoka turned to face Illumi, his golden eye gleamed ominously in the darkness, "I wish I could've taken you on a date first." he said goodbye, and without further ado jumped off the roof and landed on the sidewalk below; if he killed himself now, Illumi could take his reward without lifting a finger.

Illumi turned around to the door; he'd reather take the stairs than jump off the roof after Hisoka. The assassin couldn't kill him today, but he'll do it soon enough, so everything's fine, right?

Yes, he might've messed up this job a little, but he'll fix it; he just needs a little more time, clearer instructions and a few more bullets.

* * *

The street lantern that had been switched off before was now switched on again. Illumi looked numbly at its white light as he was walking down the street to the car that was about to drive him back home. He stopped at the same spot as before, but this time he looked up at the blinding light above his head, squinting his eyes a little.

He wasn't surprised when he heard a quiet sound behind his back, following him from the moment he exited the hotel, now much closer than before. He didn't bother to look over his shoulder and check the owner of these steps until a strong, warm hand grabbed him by his wrist, making him spin around like in a dance.

Another hand landed on his back as he met with Hisoka's amused eyes, or more with his one eye and one bloody eyeball. They ended up in an awkward position as if they were dancing in the dark under the cool street light, shining only on them like on an empty stage.

"Is there anything else?" Illumi asked blankly. Hisoka spun him around again and grabbed him tightly around his waist. This time Illumi couldn't help but ask, "What are you doing?"

"Consider it our first dance~"

"We're engaged, not married." said Illumi as they both began to move in each other's arms; none of them noticed when the assassin put his hands on Hisoka's waist and let him rest his palms on Illumi's shoulders as they were both staring at each other with mixed emotions.

"Yet." the redhead said with a smirk.

"I'm not planning on marry you."

"_Yet_."

They started to dance a gentle, but agressive dance to the subtle tune of shots in the dark echoing in the distance.

"You're being weird today, you know that?" Illumi asked as he spun Hisoka around and stopped him from falling on the ground by putting his hand on the man's lower back.

"You are the one who took the lead." Hisoka smiled innocently, and before Illumi could drop him on the ground Hisoka pulled him closer, rested his chin on his shoulder and whispered to his ear, "Do me a favor."

"For free?" he asked.

"_Yes_." said Hisoka, "Join the Phantom Troupe."

"Why would I do that?"

"So you can kill me together."

"You really enjoy having the whole world against you, don't you?" Illumi pushed him away to look into his eyes.

Hisoka chuckled before his expression went deadly serious, "This is the last time you see me. Next time, one of us will end up dead. If you want to get your reward, you have to find me first. That's another reason why you should join the Troupe." he paused, "You're a great dancer, Illumi. Next time we will dance to the death."

After that, Hisoka finally left Illumi alone. The assassin heard a familliar sound above his head when the light went out again and left him standing in the darkness like a lonely soul in a forgotten graveyard with only one grave; his own.

"The next dance will be your last." Illumi whispered and stepped into another pool of light.

_**But a shot in the dark**_

_**One step away from you**_

_**Just a shot in the dark**_

_**Always creeping up on you**_

_**All right**_


End file.
